'Live by the Knife', the first novel in the S.P.Y Files, about a teenage spy and her adventures into the world of corruption. Follow Serena's exploits both in espionage and also her relationships outside of her work life.

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Friday, 5 July 2013

How To Create Your Character.

When you’re
planning a novel, one of the first things you need to think about are your
characters. Personally, I often start by drawing out each character and writing
down a little of their background before I even write them into the book. From
here, a character will usually develop its own little story, especially if it’s
only a minor character to begin with. Although you need to watch out for lengthy
histories to make sure they don’t wreck your plotline, usually character backgrounds
can be good for the novel; they help to lengthen it and make it more
entertaining.

Because
characters are so important to the story, you have to consider them carefully.
If a character changes personality half way through the plot, make sure that it
happens on purpose. You cannot have irregularities or inconsistencies in your
story or you’ll end up confusing your audience and then no one will be happy.

Every time you
add in a new character, create a spider-diagram of her personality, her
appearance and her background. Really, this part is up to your imagination. If
it helps, use the basic persona of one of your friends and change their name
and personality a little. Since many of my friends requested a part in my
story, here are a couple of examples of how this might work:

Felicia Puxley = Felicity Pillsbury Fadererah Segun = Faderah Shegan

However, if
you’re going to use the personality of someone you know but want to show the
character in a bad light, I strongly suggest that you don’t make it too
obvious, or trouble could ensue. I usually ask my friends to help craft the
character which will be based on them, as new opinions on a personality can
often lead to a more varied storyline.

Depending on the
genre of story you are working on, you will need to create different numbers of
characters. For example, a murder mystery only needs three main characters: the
perceptive detective, his supporting sidekick in the form of a cop or a
journalist and finally the vile villain. Of course other characters are
essential to the plot to make it more interesting, to create twists and turns which
grip the reader.

You must choose
how many main characters are necessary to your plot. Who is your protagonist?
Do you have more than one? Or does everyone else primarily affect this person? And
because your protagonist is so important to your story, you need to think long
and hard about his personality. Don’t just opt for the perfect boy or girl next
door. You must invest your protagonist with personality — or else relegate the
squeaky-clean character to a secondary role.

When creating a personality, you must
be sure to keep your character original and diverse. There are a few things you
ought to keep in mind as you invent each unique person which will make for a
more fluent and believable story.

Firstly, avoid stereotypical
characters. Any generalisation could be offensive to someone and it is
important to open your story up to as varied an audience as possible. At the
same time, you need to get the balance between the farfetched and the
stereotype to allow the readers to relate to your characters. For best results,
combine your character with elements of another character type to make them
seem more diverse.

Here are six stock characters to
avoid:

1. Sidekick: The protagonist’s right-hand man usually
serves as a clashing counterpart: daring vs. nervous, thoughtful vs. tactless,
and so on. Make sure your sidekick complements the protagonist, but also keep
their relationship fresh by introducing a kind of vulnerability in the lead
that your subordinate can exploit.

2. Scatter-brained professor: This can be used to
humorous effect, but you need to deepen your character further for a more
interesting plot. Perhaps Doctor Puzzle is just pretending to be a shock-haired
scientist but really has a deep dark secret.

3. The mistake-maker: A comic-relief character who needs
to be more than just a clumsy or impish type. Perhaps he’s pretending to be a hare-brained
idiot simply to divert attention from his true purpose.

4. Tomboy: The tomboy transformed is a common ploy.
Resist the urge to use the old ‘Rags to Riches’ story. If a girl won’t conform
to feminine societal standards, go with it. But you have to ask the question,
why does she rebel against these standards? That’s the key to her character.

5.
Jiminy Cricket: The character that acts as a conscience is very often seen
in moral stories. It is used to contrast with the protagonist and offer useful
advice to help extend the plotline. This may be an effective device in some
instances, but you must handle it with care. Remember: Ceaselessly righteous
characters are boring, and stories in which they have no real challenges fail
to engage readers.

6. Dork: Geek, nerd, nimrod — been there, done that.
The stereotypical braces and glasses are now used in almost every cartoon. You
need to decide why you need this character. What makes a dork a dork? What
makes him interesting? Maybe there's a subtle hint of malevolence or passion
hidden within that could burst out over the course of the story.

Secondly, you need to check the names
of each character. It is very common for an author to become familiar with a
certain letter that they use for their names. Personally, my overused letter is
“s” as in Serena, Simon and Skye. This is not good. If you have too many
characters sharing the first initial, the reader may get confused as they get
the names mixed up. I often find it useful to write down all of the names in a
list so that you can easily check for repetition. If you need inspiration for
alternate names, baby name websites such as www.babynames.co.uk have randomisation devices and name
generators which can find a name based on meaning, origin or initial letter.

Thirdly, be realistic. Don’t try to
make your protagonist your perfect ideal of morality, the person you should be
like. Characters who always know what to do and what to say, who always do the
right thing, are less appealing, because we are less likely to relate to them,
to see our own imperfect selves reflected in them. A faultless character is a
weak basis for a successful story. Adventures appeal to us because we
sympathise with people who fail but can dust themselves off and try again. We
can relate to that and that is what builds character. Allow for mistakes in your character’s opinions or
views, because no one is perfect and everyone has a different opinion of a
particular issue.

Finally, make a short biography of
each character and keep this, with a description of the character’s appearance,
to dodge irregularities in your work. Create extra background, such as where
they are from, what event in their childhood spurred them to choose a
particular job or hobby, or what their relationship with their family is. Even
if you do not choose to add this into your writing, it will serve as useful in
helping you to connect with your characters. A writer who fully understands
each of their characters can create a more convincing storyline which the
audience will be able to relate to. Simultaneously, you will be able to compare
your character backgrounds and make sure there are no accidental similarities
which may lead to confusion in the novel. Personally, I keep a small, green
book filled with drawings and scribblings – information about my individual characters.

I hope these tips
have been useful, and remember that if it helps the story line, ignoreall of the rules! Questions? Comment below or email me at
j.m.hart.spy@gmail.com.

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About J.M. Hart

I am a teenage girl with a creative mind. This is the blog for my first novel, Live by the Knife, but if I am moved enough, I may sometimes post other random messages up! I love my family and my friends, and I love my supporters! xxx